World Rocked
by shayisaslytherin
Summary: With just a few words, Rose's and Dimitri's lives are forever changed. SPOILERS RUBY CIRCLE
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**DISCLAIMER: I am not Richelle Mead. Everything recognizable is hers. **

"You two in particular are about to get your worlds rocked," Adrian said with a goofy grin on his face. Declan cooed, and Adrian stretched out his index finger for the baby to hold. He seemed so at ease, and so excited to tell us the news.

Saying that our worlds were about to get rocked was the understatement of a lifetime. At that particular moment, I didn't know that what was going to come out of his mouth would change my whole life. I had guessed that there was something special about Declan, but I was in no way prepared for what Adrian was about to say next.

"So here is the deal," Adrian continued. "It's all really complicated, and I don't even know for sure all that happened. What I do know, as simply as I can put it, something happened to Olive when she was restored. You see, Declan is a lot more special than anyone thought possible. Hell, he shouldn't even be possible, genetically and biologically." Adrian stopped, cleared this throat, and continued. "His mom is a dhampir, but you know that already. What you guys should know is that his dad is a dhampir too."

He was right. Our world was rocked. I heard Dimitri's sharp intake of breath, as blood rushed to my ears. My mind started to race with the possibilities. We could have a family, Dimitri could have the children he always wanted but never dreamed would be possible. I could give him these children, and we would live a dream that we had never thought possible.

He would be so happy. These hypothetical children would be gorgeous, of course. Let's be honest, me and Dimitri are both knockouts. Our children would be stunning. Further, they would probably be brilliant and stubborn little creatures.

Dimitri would adore them. He would probably coo to them in Russian as they drifted off to sleep. He would read to them every night, and teach them Russian as soon as they would be able. He would probably even be able to help them with homework when they go to school.

And then there is me. The boring old, doesn't speak Russian, can't do math homework, and doesn't have a single functioning maternal instinct that all women are supposed to possess. I, who have little self-control when it comes to my own instincts and urges, responsible for a small human that would be entirely dependent on me. A small human, who will eventually have to have some sort of rules put in place that I would be absolutely horrendous at enforcing. I, who had had barely managed to take care of Karolina's daughter, responsible for my own child, all of the time. Twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

I would have to take maternity leave. Almost a full year of doing nothing but sit around in the apartment all day. I would gain weight, loose muscle mass, and have to eventually give birth in this scenario. Then I would somehow have to get back into fighting condition before I returned back to work. Someone would have to look after the hypothetical baby, and I had heard somewhere that quality childcare was starting to cost almost as college tuition would be. Oh god, money. Guardian salaries are small, even when you are the famous of the Queen and her lover. It never mattered before, simply because the two of us don't require that much extra money. But there is simply not enough to pay for a kid. I have heard that they are expensive.

There is also the small matter that I would have no clue how to be a good mother. My own mother gave me up to be raised by the Moroi, and they were basically just a string of mediocre babysitters. Janine still isn't that great of a mother. I am pretty sure I inherited that from her, because whenever I am placed in a situation where there are small children I panic. And then they start to cry.

I suppose if we were somehow able to skip the baby years and go straight to having a seven, eight, or nine year old, it may not be so bad. I could probably figure out something that would work. But kids just skipping years is impossible. But then again, I thought that this whole situation was impossible.

Sydney placed her hand on Adrian's shoulder, nodding down the hallway. "Let's give them some time to absorb." Adrian nodded, and they walked out of the room, Declan cradled happily in Sydney's arms.

I felt numb. Not just physically, but my brain felt numb. Almost like it was dumped in a vat of molasses. The world felt blurry, fuzzy, and unintelligible. How could dhampir have children, restored from being a strigoi or otherwise? It was impossible. This whole conversation shouldn't be happening. I had to be dreaming, right? That is the only way that this made sense. Our whole understanding of biology and genetics can't just simply be undone by someone being restored from the legions of the undead. Doesn't the word restore mean put back the way that is was before? Not like, resetting our whole understanding of a race. Right?

But there was Declan, and he was obvious proof that it was possible for two dhampirs to have a baby together. It didn't take a genius to guess who his father was, he looked just like him, even as a squishy faced newborn.

But hell, what did I know. Squishy faced newborns look like everyone.

I wanted it desperately to be true. I could see it in Dimitri's eyes whenever he saw a child or was around his nieces and nephews. He wanted kids, and he would be a good father. It was heartbreaking that I couldn't give them to him.

But then again, what if Adrian was wrong? What if this was all false hope?

Then there was the small matter that I would be a horrible parent. I could get away with not wanting kids when I thought that we couldn't. If it isn't a possibility, it doesn't even have to be discussed. Now that we could (if this whole thing wasn't some messed up lie on Olive's part), the horrible truth had to be realized one way or another. Either I had to come clean to Dimitri and say that I don't want kids because I would be an absolutely terrible mother, or I will end up pregnant anyways, and once the kid gets here he would realize just how useless I am with kids.

I could see no other possible outcome.

I peeked a glance at Dimitri, who was still frozen in shock. I swear, he hadn't moved a muscle since Adrian told us. Not even so much of a twitch of the face, or shifting of his hand. He was a godly statue of shock, and while I would love to just sit there and gawk at him, staying in such a state for extended periods of time couldn't possibly be healthy for him.

I reached out and grabbed his hand, rubbing circles with my thumb gently on his knuckles. He relaxed a bit, but was still totally floored.

"So," I started, not really sure how I should even begin to end the statement. "Wow," I said quietly after a moment's consideration. The biggest, goofiest grin that I had ever seen lit up his features. Man, I had thought he was earth shatteringly sexy before. This was on its own new level of godliness. I swear, my breath may have even caught in my throat for a moment. If I were an extremely sentimental person I would have teared up a bit.

"Wow is a bit of an understatement, Roza," he breathed. He pulled me down to the couch, wrapping one of his arms around me.

"How about absolutely astonishingly, impossibly, strangely, and impossibly wow," I smiled, proclaiming with my usual air of self-importance.

"You said impossibly twice."

"Its poetry, comrade. Don't question my mad skills as an artist."

He snorted, shaking his head a bit. "This is amazing."

"What, my poetry. Yeah it is," I said slowly. I knew I should tell him that I thought it was a bad idea, but just one look at his face made that impossible for me. The pure joy that overcame his features, and knowing that I could absolutely shatter that joy with just a few words made me feel terrible. "I know it is," I repeated in a more serious tone. Sighing, I leaned against his shoulder. I would tell him my feelings on the matter later, maybe when he had calmed down a bit.

He pressed his lips against my forehead. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that everything that I have been taught has now somehow managed to flip itself around, and it is a bit overwhelming." This was the truth. Science says that dhampirs can't procreate with each other. Science can tell us exactly why this is the case too. Then, some magical, undefinable, and unknown force comes in and absolutely changes what science says to be true. I may not be particularly science-y, or scholarly, but I did believe in what science has proven to be true of biology. I have studied it, by choice, and this shouldn't be possible.

"Understandable. I am overwhelmed as well."

"So," I drew out, "what is going to happen next?"

He shrugged. "We can talk about it later. When we both have had some time to think."

**A/N: I literally just finished the Ruby Circle yesterday. It completely interrupted my life. I read instead of finishing a paper that was due that day. Now that I have the paper finished, I was able to write this. This is my first time writing for VA, something I have been wanting to do for a long time but I was waiting for Richelle Mead to finish the series so I could know what I could work with. And when she did finish, she gave me the perfect opportunity to write this. Ah, she is brilliant!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Dimitri's POV**

**DISCLAIMER: Obviously, I don't own anything recognizable. It is a fanfiction, after all. **

Rose was uncharacteristically silent. To be honest, it was concerning. Silence never bode well when it came to her, it always meant that there was something upsetting her. Though, given the recent turn of events, it wasn't exactly unexpected.

She sat in the passenger seat, her lips pursed as she leaned against the window. Palms springs went by in a blur, and she took no notice of it. She hadn't even requested to drive. That is how I truly knew that something was troubling her.

The car ride went by in silence. This was both a good and bad thing all at once. For one, Rose was never just completely silent. Whenever she was, there was something terribly wrong. When staring death in the face or going against strigoi, she was always her loud, rambunctious, and talkative self. On the rare occasion that it was quiet, she felt incredibly awkward. Now, instead of feeling awkward she seemed not to notice it. Even though there was an undeniably foreboding feel about this quiet, it was a good opportunity for me to collect my own thoughts on the matter. So, we both were in the car, absorbed by our own minds.

I couldn't let this opportunity (albeit worrisome) pass without somehow taking advantage of it. If I had one complaint about my life together with Rose it would be the fact that I rarely have just pure and simple quiet. Either Rose is initiating conversation, or she has something on to make noise, like the radio or television.

But anyways, I digress.

Initially, my thoughts were of complete and utter joy. Coming from a fairly large, close family, I have always liked the idea of children. I had never dared to think that someday I could have a child of my own, since it is fairly foolish of a simple dhampir to think that. Despite this, I loved it when Karolina had Paul. When I was home from school for holidays or for the summer, I would watch him when my sister went to work.

There is a simple honesty and sincerity in children that is rarely found in adults. They are blunt, and at times rather selfish, but they do everything with unrivaled eagerness and passion. Children are honestly mind boggling to think about. The possibilities of the direction their lives are heading is endless, and just the thought that one person can alter this tiny humans life one way or the other is simply amazing. They have the power to one day do so much good in the world, but also the same amount of evil. Just the idea that I- or anyone, for that matter- could influence another human being like that is beyond description.

But, I could potentially have the power to negatively influence any child- mine or otherwise. It would be a tad bit narcissistic to just make the assumption that I would do only good as a father. The fact still remains that while I have had my mother in my life, my father wasn't that great of a person either. I operate under the assumption that he was not always a terrible human being, and that something had to happen to change his behavior in life. What if that something was the introduction of children into his life? What if the hardships of being a parent made him the drunken idiot that I now see today? And who is to say that the same won't happen to me?

I am a guardian. I am already under the stress that come with always being prepared for the worst, and always being ready to charge into death to protect my charge. Who is to say that this combined with a new baby wouldn't make me snap? Is it even responsible to have a child in this situation, where I leave every day to go to work and know full well that there is a very real chance that I may never come back? And it isn't just me who has to deal with this occupational hazard, but Rose as well. Wouldn't it be irresponsible to bring a child into this world, knowing full well that they could potentially be left without parents? Dhampirs don't live long, and we seemingly have even more bad luck when it comes to dying (even though we were both brought back magically at some point.)

Rose.

I can't picture her ever leaving the guardians to raise a child. Heck, I can barely even picture her with a child. The time that we spent in Clarence's with Daniella and Declan were stressful for her, to say the least. She obviously doesn't know the first thing about taking care of a baby, or anything about children. This was made obvious when I found her in the kitchen making Declan a bottle of milk from a jug, not formula. And when she put his diaper on backwards. And when she set him on the couch instead of his bassinet when she needed to do something. She could always learn, but generally there is some natural instinct (or even just generalized knowledge) to work with.

To be even more practical, there is the fact that we wouldn't be able to hide a child. The world would know that it is ours, and the world would want to know how it is so. There would be a media frenzy, and the kid would be the center of it. I couldn't even guess the extent of the experimentation and medical analysis that would happen.

As an ongoing study in medical (and magical) possibilities, I could say with authority that I wouldn't wish that on any person, let alone a child. Especially mine.

Logically, there are so many things that would make having a child the wrong option. Despite this, there is still the lingering initial joy I felt, even though the facts say that I should feel otherwise.

Just as I pulled into the hotel parking lot, Rose sat up abruptly, a look of determination flashing across her face. "Dimitri?" she said clearly. Looking at me with a look of utter honesty she said "I don't even know if I want to have kids."

Then her look of honesty morphed into an apologetic expression. I schooled my own features, though I didn't really need to as I was reaching this same conclusion by reasoning. She met my eyes, "sorry, but I thought I should probably be upfront about it."

But still, there was that small shred of joy that so desperately wished for it to be otherwise. "I know."

"You know? But-"

"It really wouldn't be a wise decision, would it?" I interrupted her. "As much as I want it to be differently, our lives just aren't able to facilitate having a child right now. There would too many questions asked, and we both are busy as guardians. I unfortunately don't see that changing anytime soon."

Now, she looked a bit stunned. "Oh," she looked more relieved than disappointed. "Yeah, I guess it isn't."

"Did you have a different reasoning?"

"Well, yeah. Mainly I suck when it comes to kids," she dropped her gaze, shuffling in the seat.

"You could learn," the part of me that wanted this voiced. I internally frowned at myself. It is rather self-defeating to say it is a bad idea then in the next breath build up an argument for it.

"Yeah, but that doesn't change the fact that I do really suck at it," she gave me a stern look. "Don't try to deny it, Comrade."

"I won't," I replied breezily. I bite my tongue to stop me from continuing to say that once she learned how, she wouldn't suck, as she puts it.

"Wow," she smiled. Her mood instantly brightened. "I didn't think that this conversation would go over this smoothly. Can we go get burritos for dinner? I am starving."

I couldn't help but grin with her, even though a part of me felt like something was terribly wrong with the situation.

**A/N: Yeah, I know I told those of you who reviewed that I was working on an update, and that I was going to update sooner. I'm sorry! I really was working on it, but I just had so much issues with getting this scene right. I originally started to write in Rose's POV, but it just didn't feel right. Then I tried Dimitri's POV, and it still felt forced. I finally produced this, and I am pretty satisfied with this. **

**To be completely honest with you, I don't really have a long term plan with this story. I don't know where I am going with the plot, other than a few general ideas. If anyone has any suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it! **

**Thank you everyone for reviewing, following and favoriting! In just one upload, I have received so much more support than I have writing for other fandoms! You guys are awesome! **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Rose POV

DISCLAIMER: I am not Richelle Mead. We are fellow redhead, but alas, we are not the same person. All recognizable characters and themes and everything is hers. I just fruitlessly make fanfiction as a continuation of the greatness she has created.

**A/N: I wrote and edited this quickly. Be warned, there may be a few grammatical flaws. If you find one, please tell me.**

Something was up with Dimitri. Though we had this wonderful (queue sarcastic snort) discussion in the car, and did all the things that couples are supposed to do to maintain a healthy relationship, I knew he was holding back. I didn't think that he was exactly lying, per se, but I knew that he wasn't being entirely truthful either. Here is what I also know; Dimitri wants kids. I talks good game about the reasons not to have them, but there was no denying the pain in his eyes when we both reached the conclusion that having a baby would ultimately be a bad decision.

This should make me unhappy. I should be upset that he is hurting. If I were a good girlfriend, I would be doing my best to take away the pain. Instead, I am relived. And rejoicing that we won't need to come back to this decision again.

I feel guilty about it, yes. But I feel more relieved than guilty. Yes, I know. I am shit at this girlfriend thing. I should win an award. This whole situation has made me this jumbled up mess of both guilt and joy. This hasn't gone completely unnoticed by others. Not only by Dimitri, who had felt the need to plan a surprise date later that day, but by Lissa as well.

"You know," Lissa said with her lips pursed, "you could tell me what is going on."

We were at the spa (stereotypical, I know), getting pedicures. Well, I was getting a pedicure. She was getting a manicure. Paint on your toenails lasts significantly longer than when applied to fingernails, for whatever reason. This is even more true when you just so happen to be a guardian. Not even stubborn glitter polish stays on for more than a couple days when you are constantly preparing to be attacked by monstrous creatures of the undead.

"It's nothing," I brushed her off lightly. I wiggled my toenails, watching the red glitter that had been painstakingly applied as the light hit it. Glitter and girly so aren't my thing, but when I saw the shimmering blood red polish I just knew that I had to have it.

"You have been acting strange lately," she noted, rightfully, I may add. "So it obviously isn't something. And don't lie," she added quickly when I opened my mouth to protest. "I can read it in your aura."

I considered telling her. I mean, we are supposed to keep the truth about Declan's parentage a secret, but she is my best friend. I have kept so many secrets from her in the past.

"It isn't something I want to talk about right now." I shrugged, hoping she would drop it. I didn't want to lie to her, but I also didn't want to spill the beans about this newest development in the ever unfolding drama that was my life. If she kept on pushing, I would be forced to do one or the other.

Lissa looked at me for a moment, a contemplating stare that felt like she was trying really hard to see the inside of my soul. In reality, this was just the look that she got when she was trying really hard to read someone's aura. "Okay," she replied finally. "But we will talk about it later, right?"

"Yeah," I smiled. "Later."

"Lovely. Do you think I should paint my nails white or pink?" She asked, holding out the two bottles of polish. One was a lovely, pristine ivory color that shimmered slightly in the light. The other was an absolutely garish hot pink.

"White," I laughed. "The pink looks like a bottle of Pepto-Bismol."

And so our afternoon went. Us doing silly, frivolous things since it was her day off from most of the demands that came with being the queen of a group of living vampires. It was a welcome break from the strangeness that was our regular, daily lives.

As the day turned to late afternoon, I reluctantly left my best friend behind in palace living. She all but had to shove me out the door for my surprise date with Dimitri.

"Go!" she commanded, shooing me out of the apartment. "You guys deserve a night off. I will be fine. You only left about twenty extra guardians with me."

"Maybe I should check the perimeter again, just to be safe."

"Someone else will do that. In fact, three of them will do that. Triple checked. Everything will be fine here. Go!"

So I left. It wasn't that I didn't want to go out with Dimitri, because, trust me, I do. We rarely have alone time. But leaving Lissa is hard. Call me paranoid, but I am always worried that something will happen to her when I am gone. Sure, something may happen to her when I am with her, but then I can be there to take care of it. It may be a bit conceited to say so, but I do my job better than anyone else I know. Except maybe Dimitri. He is a god after all. (But I may just be a little biased, as he is my incredibly attractive boyfriend.)

I didn't know exactly where we were going that night. All I had gotten was a text telling me to meet him at our small apartment once my shift was over. For most girls, this would be utterly sweet and romantic. They would swoon, and grow faint in anticipation. For me, I was just painfully curious as to what exactly he had planned. I really am not a fan of surprises (even when they are cute and well-intended). I was sure that Dimitri hadn't planned anything too uncomfortable or extravagant. Because if that was the case, I wouldn't be dressed accordingly.

I was standing in front of my messy closet when he came into the apartment. The same closet that he was now regarding with mild amusement.

"Didn't you just clean that out yesterday?" He wrapped his arms around me from behind, dropping soft kisses to the tender skin of my neck.

I breathed in the smell of his aftershave mixed perfectly with the faint scent of sweat. Sexy. "Yes, and now I can't find anything," I murmured. "I don't understand how you can live with everything so clean. I looked with disdain to his side of the closet. It had somehow managed to remain mostly clean, though I doubted it would remain that way. My side had piles of clothes that threatened to topple over into his infuriatingly clean side.

"What are you looking for?" His voice was low as his lips caressed the skin behind my ear. I shivered.

"There is a red shirt somewhere," I replied vaguely. I wasn't completely out of it yet, but his presence made me dizzy.

Dimitri looked hopelessly at the mess that I had created in our bedroom. "Is it that one?" He pointed to a shirt that lay on top of a mound of clothes on top of the bed.

"No. I may have left it at Lissa's." I wanted to tell him to forget about the stupid shirt and the date. I was about to launch into an extremely compelling argument about spending the night at home when he broke away.

I pouted a bit in protest, but it had no effect on him.

He gave me an appraising look. "What you are wearing is fine. Let's go."

"Where are we going?" I went up on tiptoes to press a quick peck to his cheek.

"It's a surprise," he replied easily, a cheeky grin spreading across his face. "So you don't get to know until we get there."

"So I guess that means I'm not driving then."

"Not a chance. Not after last time, at least."

The surprise happened to be this really cool and retro dinner date at a 60's themed diner. I know, not very climatic, in its explanation. But still.

This was part of Dimitri's ever present campaign to make me appreciate his strange taste in music. Though I never would completely change into the oldies fan that he is, I have grown somewhat fond of the music. Not that I would ever admit this- not even under threat of death- but the music reminds me of him. It is sappy, it is cliqued, and it is so not Rose like. But it is the simple truth of the matter.

That, and they had amazing milkshakes here. So I really can't complain.

"I still don't understand why you do that," Dimitri said as he watched me dunk a French fry into the depths of the chocolaty goodness that was my shake. "It doesn't seem like it would taste good."

"Looks can be deceiving, Comrade." I happily ate the fry. The mixture of the hot and salty fry mixed perfectly with the chocolaty sweetness of the triple fudge deluxe milkshake. It was a swoon worth mixture, one that Dimitri was incredibly hesitant to try.

I offered him one, which he declined with a slightly bemused expression. I shrugged, "so, weird food with questionable origins is okay, but a delicious fry with even more delicious chocolate is a no go. Figures."

"Americans are weird."

"Russians are weird."

"What you say is weird about Russia are small things that make sense. Like nicknames. Americans just are strange."

"But," I enunciated this by putting another fry in my mouth, "we eat deliciously."

"If you say so."

"Come on! Don't knock it until you try it!"

"If I try, will you stop harassing me about eating your weird American fries?"

"Yes."

"Fine."

I raised a fist in victory. And watched in rapture as he at the freaking fry. Not in a creepy, stalker-ish way. I just wanted to see his expression as he ate the food of the gods.

In the infuriating way of his, he kept his face impassive as he swallowed, his guardian mask slipping over his features. This would have upset me more if he hadn't said a few moments later; "that wasn't as bad as I thought."

"Good?"

"Not bad."

"Excellent."

It was at that precise moment that something came careening into the wobbly, chromatic table we were perched next to. A small human, to be precise. Who was quickly tackled by yet another small human who I presumed to be his brother.

Despite the fact that they couldn't have been very big, they knocked over our table. The table crashed to the checkered linoleum, my milkshake splattered on the ground, and my precious fries landed in something red and sticky.

A small woman chased the two boys. She was young, but still older than me, and had an apologetic expression, "I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, grabbing her kids by the arms. "They are just so, hyper, ya know? Boys will be boys. But anyways, I'm so sorry. Toby, Garret, say sorry."

One boy apologized, actually looking slightly ashamed. The other stuck his tongue out, which prompted his brother to stomp on his toes.

I was about ready to give the lady a piece of my mind, something to do with her responsibilities as a parent and how she kinda ruined my meal. And the fact that she shouldn't let her children run around like the little hellions that they so obviously are. But I was unable to say anything, as my ever charming boyfriend spoke.

"It's fine. Don't worry about it," he smiled at her. I groaned inwardly as she started to blush.

I bit my tongue, realizing that Dimitri really wouldn't appreciate it if I said what I was really thinking. I gave her a small smile, but it felt like my face was stuck in a grimace. Not trusting myself to speak without angering Dimitri, I simply looped my arm around him, and started pulling him out of the restaurant.

We didn't get far before one of the little kids ran up to us. Apparently, we looked inviting to the small cretin.

"Hey mister!" he yelled at Dimitri, even though he had situated himself right in front of us. Probably assumed that because of his height, he would have issues hearing him. After all he did only come up to Dimitri's knee. "Why do you talk funny?"

"Toby!" His mother yelled back in the other side of the resturaunt. "That is rude! Apologize!"

"But it is the truth!" He hollered back, elongating the word truth for dramatic effect.

I scowled. Dimitri smiled. "It's because I am not from America. I don't talk like Americans."

"Oh, cool," Toby looked thoroughly intrigued. He probably would have said more, but his mother yelled for him to "get his sorry butt back over here" or he would be in "serious trouble, mister". So he scampered away, calling "bye, mister" over his shoulder.

**A/N: I read a lot of fics, and one of the things that I don't necessarily like is how Lissa often gets put to the side (or not really mentioned at all.) I wanted a scene where Lissa was present. Also, I felt the need to include Rose's hesitance about leaving Liss, even though there are extra guardians around. She is very protective, and doesn't think that anyone else can do the job as well as she can (except maybe Dimitri.) **

**Thanks to luciinwaters! I took one of her ideas from the reviews (see Toby and Garret.) And another thanks to everyone else who left suggestions as well! Keep it coming!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Dimitri's POV

**Guest Review Responses (I won't do these every chapter. I just wait until I have a big handful to reply to): **

**Guest (3/2/15): I have never heard of anyone squealing like a cat at my stories. I haven't even heard my cat squeal like anything. Thanks though! I'm glad you enjoyed it. **

**Guest (2/13/15) and (2/11/15): Thank you! **

**Also, just a notice that there is a time jump in this chapter. The first bit immediately follows the last chapter, and then it jumps a few weeks. **

"Ugh!" Rose grumbled as we made our way to the car. Her feet kicked at the gravel as she walked, her hands stuffed into the pockets of her jacket.

"What?" I asked, looking at her with concern. Her face still carried a look of annoyance from the time we left the diner.

"You know what!" she scoffed, her fists burrowing deeper into her pockets. "I wasn't finished with my food!"

Of course, this would be a source of great distress to her.

"Rose, it was a simple mistake."

"I know that, but still! People shouldn't let their kids run all over the place and completely destroy their glorious milkshakes."

"Cut them a little slack. I'm sure that lady was trying her best."

Rose muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "not good enough."

I chose not to respond to that. Instead, I wrapped my arms around her, pressing a kiss to her temple. She calmed down a little.

"Now you are trying to distract me."

"Yes. Is it working?"

"Hmm."

"Let's not let it ruin our night, okay? We don't spend enough time together to let this get under our skin."

"M'kay," Rose murmured into my chest. She inhaled deeply for a moment, then exhaled slowly. "You smell good."

I snickered and pressed another kiss to her forehead.

For once, Rose and I were able to have some semblance of a normal life for the next few weeks. Well, as normal as our lives can get. We are two half vampire creatures who guard full vampires from the legions of the undead. So maybe peaceful would be a better word.

Lissa was able to pass a new bill through the council dissolving the previous inheritance laws. This allowed Jill to go back to Saint Vladimir's to finish out school. While we were originally braced for another threat against the queen's life, since all those who were targeting Jill would now focus their efforts on Lissa, it turned out to be all for naught. There was no detectible increase in the threat level to the teenaged queen's rule.

While Rose was with Lissa at meetings, conferences, and balls, Christian and I stayed around palace housing. My shifts were spent playing Mario Kart, helping Christian cook food for our significant others, and reading western novels. When I wasn't working I was either with Rose or helping Sonya with the vaccine.

Work on the vaccine wasn't going well. In a last ditch attempt to figure out more about the restoration we sent the samples for a last full analysis by specialist in the field. Results should be back in the next couple days, and we were praying for something we could go off of. Without any new information, we would be at a dead end for who knows how long.

"I think the spirit is staring to get to Lissa."

"What do you mean?"

"She has been acting so strange lately. Grumpy one minute and elated the next. Reminds me of Adrian before he went on meds."

"Have you talked to her about this?"

"I started to bring it up a couple times. But, you know, the mood swings happen."

"I don't know what to tell you other than talk to her."

"I know."

There was silence for a few more minutes. I was about to turn my attention back to the novel I had propped up on the counter top. Just as my eyes took in the first few words at the top of the page, Christian spoke again.

"What if her… issues really are coming back?"

"I don't see the point of dwelling on this," he didn't seem to hear me.

"How are people going to react if they knew the true effects that spirit has on their queen?"

I sighed deeply, keeping collected. "She has always had the spirit. It has always been there, even when you think it is gone. Does that change the way you think about her?"

"No, but I am her boyfriend."

"Lissa has gotten through this before. In a way, her lows make up just as much essence that her highs do. Anyways, we know how to help her, and we are keeping a close eye on her."

Christian just looked at me for a few minutes, pondering my seriousness and the truth of my words. Finally, he muttered, "that sounds suspiciously like something Rose would say."

"That's because she would have said something around those lines if she were here. Only she would have handled your doubt on the truth of it very differently."

He smirked at me and I grinned back. Then a crash and a few choice words could be heard from the entry way.

"Speak of the devil," Christian laughed.

"Is there food?" Rose demanded. It had obviously been raining before they had come in, since Rose wrung out her hair into the sink. "I'm starving."

She spotted the lasagna left to cool on the stove and was about to grab a bit of it with her fingers when Christian swatted her knuckles with a rubber spatula.

"Hey!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Dinner isn't ready yet!" Christian growled, looking rabid. "Go toss the salad, then you can eat."

Rose looked puzzled. "Are you sure about that, Sparky?"

"Yes go."

To any onlooker, what would happen next would be obvious. However, Christian didn't actually consider the fact that Rose would actually _toss _the salad. To the floor, or the wall, with a puzzled expression on her face.

She glanced up to me, "please tell me this is just some fancy, snobby, rich person recipe. I just ate a Wendy's salad yesterday."

I couldn't help it. I laughed.

"I can't believe you didn't stop me," Rose grumbled as we left palace housing for our own apartment across the court. "I looked like an idiot."

I guffawed. She growled.

"I'm never going to be able to live this down, am I?"

I shook my head, but pulled her arm through mine. "Probably not. But give it a couple weeks. Then you will be able to see the humor too."

"Yeah, right," she grumbled again. Then chuckled. "Why the hell would they call it "tossing" if you don't toss it?"

"You toss it in a bowl. Usually with tongs. And it stays in the bowl the whole time."

"No! That is mixing!" she objected loudly. "Tossing is taking something and throwing it. Maybe I could have thrown it in a bowl. But when one says "toss the salad" I think, throw it. Like a ball."

"What?" another voice piped in.

We whipped around to see a frazzled looking Sonya, her ginger hair sticking up at odd angles and her work shirt coming untucked from her slacks.

"Never mind," she shook her head fiercely, as if she were trying to air it out in the crisp air. "That isn't important now. The results from the lab came back in. And it is better than I could have ever guessed."

"What did they find out?"

"The mutation. It is gone."

"Which mutation?" I asked, puzzled. Rose's expression matched mine.

"THE mutation! It is absolutely world changing!" she exclaimed, then took a deep breath. She ran her hand over her frizzy hair. "The mutation that stops dhampirs from reproduction with each other. It is gone."

**A/N: Dun, dunn, dunnnnn! Bet you didn't see that coming!**

**A massive thanks to Rrraaachel (I really hope I spelled that right), and her shout out in her story To Serve and Protect. Go read it! It is one of the best and most accurate portrayals of the characters is VA I have read! **

**I have created a blog. It is a great blog of bloggy things (if I do say so myself.) I am my blunt, usual self on said blog. Be a dear and check it out, yeah? From there you can find links to my twitter account so you can keep up with my life and know when I update and stuff. Give it a follow or a like or whatever you feel like! www dot ****magicallydivineinspirationfairy. wordpress dot com**

**I got into honors program at my university! I am so freaking excited and amazed. So this means that I will be swamped with school related things soon. But I am pretty free for this next year or so. **

**Last matter; I have three works in progress right now. It can be stressful. I bit off a lot more than I should have. So while I have been able to update pretty regularly this week for all of them, I am going to need to start giving priority to the ones with the most support. This is gauged by reviews, follows, and favorites. So when an author literally says that reviews make them write faster, it is true (at least in my case.) **

**You are all awesome. Until next time. **

**Thank you all! **


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Rose's POV

**Disclaimer: This is a fanfiction. In case you can't tell by the name of the website. This means that this is based off of someone else's intellectual property. There, you have been thoroughly warned. **

My initial response would have been a sarcastic "you don't say," but I held my tongue and tried to look as shocked as possible. Which I could tell by the side eye from Dimitri, that it wasn't working well. He looked like his regular, impassive and stoic self. I attempted to mimic him, but I'm fairly certain that I just looked like I ate bad Mexican food.

Sonya gauged our reactions. I could practically feel her read our auras for the slightest thing out of place. Her nose and forehead were doing the same squinty thing that Lissa's did when they were really focusing on auras. I stood my ground the best I could, but in all actually, there is nothing more intimidating than a spirit user directing all their energy at sensing your mojo.

With a final once over from Sonya, she finally directed her energy at Dimitri, who is remarkably more composed while staring into the eyes of a suspicious spirit user. But he didn't get the glare for nearly as long as I did, because Sonya apparently already figured out something was up.

"But you guys already knew that," she stated plainly. "How?" She leaned against the hallway wall, using one arm to prop herself up and the other to hold back her tangled hair. She looked as if she hadn't gotten any sleep, and that if not for her excitement over her newest discovery, she would have passed out on the spot.

Dimitri and I exchanged a brief side glance before I replied simply, "it's a long story." I wrapped my arms around my waist, suddenly very uncomfortable with this change of events.

That small movement didn't go unseen by Sonya, who then thoroughly examined my midsection as though I were pregnant at that very moment. Satisfied that my stomach hadn't grown enough to indicate the presence of a miniature human, she looked me in the eyes and said "make it short."

"Well, the really short version would be that two dhampirs had a baby together," I said carefully, not really meaning to be sarcastic, but not finding another way around it. Obviously, two dhampirs would have had to have a baby together, or else we wouldn't know about it. It isn't like we sequenced our own genetic makeup to find out.

Sonya, understandably, rolled her eyes. "Gee, that's helpful Rose. Are you pregnant?"

Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. "No," I scoffed.

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely," I said, disgusted that she would think that I wouldn't be sure about this sort of thing.

Her squinty eyes told me she was reading my aura again. "Were you, at any point, pregnant?" She asked, her forehead creasing.

"No."

Her mojo sensing powers obviously told her that I was not lying, because he face unsrunched. "Then how do you know?" Her eyebrow hitched, once again, acutely reminding me that I couldn't do that. Life was unfair.

"Again, it's a long story," Dimitri intervened. "One we aren't really at liberty to discuss."

"It is for the good of all dhampirs!" Sonya exclaimed, her movements a little exaggerated from exhaustion. "Everything will be confidential, I swear."

"Until you would need to go public to get approval to distribute the vaccine," I pointed out, then added on as an afterthought "or whatever you would call it. Then you would completely turn some poor kid's life upside down and make them into the next wonder of the world. Come one, come all, see the first child born of not one, but two dhampir parents."

"No, we would be more careful than that," Sonya said quickly. "I don't think you understand, this child could help speed up the time it would take to create this new treatment. Not to mention they would be an invaluable resource to our research."

"And that is exactly why we aren't going to be saying much else on the matter," I argued, wanting to throw my hands up in exasperation. "He is a kid. Not a resource, or a way of making things easier for you. In fact, I was kind of under the impression that kids are supposed to make life more difficult for adults."

"Besides, you already have enough to start your research from my samples," Dimitri quickly interjected, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "If not, you can draw some more blood, or whatever you need."

"I suppose," she finally conceded. "But it really would be great to get some bloodwork from the kid."

"It isn't even our decision to make," Dimitri pointed out calmly, slowly staring to angle us away from Sonya and back to our apartment. "It's his parents. And they won't allow it."

"Okay," Sonya responded, not looking like she had given up on the matter. "I'll let you guys get home. Are you still coming in tomorrow, Dimitri?"

"Yes. Goodnight."

Neither one of us said anything as we walked down the remainder of the hallway. In fact, neither one of us said anything for quite some time. I kicked off my shoes, stopping for a moment to put them on the shoe rack that Dimitri had purchased in hopes I wouldn't leave them laying around the apartment for him to trip on. And shuffled my way into the bedroom to throw on sweats and fuzzy socks. He plopped down on the worn, plaid second hand couch that we had bought at a yard sale that summer for a suspiciously low price. It was comfortable, and we couldn't really find a reason not to get it (other than its hideous appearance), so after a couple deep steam cleanings we finally allowed it into the building. We keep on promising to get a cover for it, but we still haven't found the time to get it done.

I was partly ashamed of myself for that one. Mainly because I was useless at remembering basic household maintaining things. Partially because we were now the couple who made grand plans about their next shopping trip to IKEA that I had always made fun of. I'm a hypocrite, I know.

Happily clad in jammies and warm socks, I plopped on the seat next to him. He wrapped an arm around me. I laid against his chest with closed eyes, listening to his heartbeat and breathing in the smell of his aftershave mixed with the scent of his old western that he had propped against his knee. No matter how painfully clique it was, I lived for moments like these. Where we could just sit together and be happy.

So I mentally kicked myself when I let myself shatter the blissful moment when I opened my mouth and said "we should probably tell Sydney and Adrian about what just happened." I cringed almost as soon as the words left my mouth. Mentally, at least. Physically, I was far too comfortable to be doing any kind of cringing.

Dimitri shifted and I heard the definitive snap of his book closing. I stole a peek at him, finding that he still wore the stoic and unfaltering expression he had when being questioned by Sonya.

"Yeah, we should probably do that," he replied coldly, barely sparing a glance at me.

"What's wrong?" I asked, reaching to his face.

Moved his head away, catching my fingers in his hand. He looked down at me. "When we were talking with Sonya, you sounded not only offended by the idea of pregnancy, but disgusted."

"Did I?" I asked, not really liking the tone he was using.

"Yes, you did."

"Sorry."

"That's not all. It made me start thinking. You haven't been entirely honest with me about the possibility of children, have you?" This was phrased as a question, but his tone made it more like a statement. "When Adrian first told us about the possibility, you told me you didn't think you wanted kids. I mistook that for thinking about their future, and how they would become lab rats. In reality, that wasn't really you meaning, was it?"

"Dimitri," I started, but he held his hand up to stop me from saying anything more.

"No. I'm not done. You just used that as a convenient excuse to convince me to drop the subject. You don't want children. From the conversation earlier, the thought of it repulses you. Why not just tell me the truth from the beginning?" His face looked at me coolly, impassively, as though his words didn't sting. But they did.

"I thought it would be better?" I offered with a shrug.

"Better than right now, where a possibility where we could have a normal family is presented only to find out that you have been lying to me this entire time? Great plan, Rose." He replied, completely deadpan.

"I wasn't lying to you!" I seethed at the accusation. "I never lied to you."

"You weren't telling the truth," he spat, his stoic façade cracking to expose the riptide of emotions he was feeling.

"I thought you would have been hurt," I whimpered, leaning foreward to try to calm him in with my touch. Again, he jerked away.

"You were right, I am hurt. I'm done with this conversation. Good night, Rose." With that, he pushed himself off the sofa and stalked off into the spare bedroom, the door slamming shut behind him.

I was left, sitting in our dim living room with only a table lamp for light, wondering how things had gotten out of hand so quickly.

**A/N: Wow. I did not go into writing this chapter planning that they would fight. But characters really do have a life of their own. I just struggle to keep up. **

**But I'm baacckkk! Finally, school has let out for the summer (after two solid weeks of staying up until five in the morning to get art projects done) and I have finally adjusted to my new shift at work. My life is now back into a pattern, and I know have the time to write. I promise I didn't mean to leave you guys hanging for so long, but you know, life. **

**Also, recently I have created a beta reader profile here! For VA only, at the moment, so if anyone is looking for a beta reader, hit me up. **

**As always, thank you all for reading (even though I am absolutely horrendous at updating like a normal person) and you reviews are greatly appreciated! **

**Love you all,**

**Shayisaslytherin**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Rose's POV Again….

**Wow. Opinions. Much opinions. All the opinions. Some people left some pretty intense reviews about the last chapter. FYI luciinwaters's review pretty much nailed what I am aiming to get at with this story. Hopefully this chapter will help set the record straight. **

**Also, there was a very opinionated guest review. They didn't leave an alias, so I will just put what they said in italics. **_**"Rose is just like her mother, cold and heartless. She loves Dimitri because he is there for her and only her, but not enough to give him the one thing in the world that he would want... I don't blame Dimitri [for] being pissed off. I would too, in fact I would be packing my bags and leaving Rose to grow old... Alone and be a spinster." **_**To be honest with you guest, I agree with what you say about a woman's body being her own and that she can chose to do what she wants with it. But lady (assuming you are a lady), you crossed a line when you insulted my ship. As a writer I am delighted that I brought you such intense emotions. But at the same time I'm a bit curious as to why you are reading fanfiction about Rose if you don't like her. **

**One last thing to point out. My last chapter ended a bit abruptly, at the end of a pretty one sided argument. I'm not going to leave it like that, so random guest will be disappointed to know that I don't plan on having Rose and Dimitri split up any time soon. **

**Disclaimer: Try as I might, I am not Richelle Mead. I'm not even a ginger anymore. My hair is now a jumble of purple, blue, and grey. And it is fantastic. **

Spending the night camped out on the hallway floor, laying on top of the couch cushions was not something I would recommend. However, sleeping on the rough carpet was much better than going back to the cushy master bed. I can't sleep in that room without him, and tonight was no exception. Actually, this time it was worse. He wasn't on the other side of the county, or fulfilling is guardian duties. He was ignoring me. So now I was laying against the guest bedroom's door frame.

I know. I am pathetically desperate. It this situation were happening to anyone else, I would probably call them a stalker. The only thing that separates me from being a stalker was the fact that I do, indeed, live in this apartment and contribute towards rent. I would call myself a stalker if I didn't you know, inhabit this place. The fact is that I do pay for half the rent, and technically the unit is leased under my name. So, I will sleep wherever I damn well please. On the old, tan, carpeted hallway floor. That hasn't been vacuumed in at least two weeks.

I found myself half leaning and half laying against the doorframe. Dimitri wasn't one for conflict, and when we find ourselves in arguments like this, he will actively avoid me. For once, I was going to be the one to fix this issue, but that required actually getting him to acknowledge my existence. Blocking the door before he went to work seemed to be a good idea.

My plan was to position myself so that I would wake up when he opened the door. This would be at five in the morning, when his alarm clock always went off. Then we would talk. I would tell him the truth, and he would hopefully stop being angry at me.

And that was what happened. Sort of.

I woke up as the door I had propped myself against swung open. My eyes flung open. I was looking up at Dimitri, who stared down at me with a slightly startled expression. My shoulder and neck throbbed, and I was deeply confused for a moment. I was sprawled out on the floor, and he was standing over me, both of us saying nothing. Then, as the passive and stoic expression came over Dimitri's features, I remembered what I was there for.

He straightened up, and seemed like he was about to step over me when I finally found my voice, "Wait," I said, my voice breaking a bit. "Hold on," I begged, struggling to collect my thoughts.

He froze, still looking at me with a blank expression. "What are you doing?" He asked after a few, agonizingly silent moments.

"Waiting to talk to you," I murmured, trying to pull myself into an upright position. Dimitri offered no hand to help me back up on to my feet, so I rolled over onto my stomach so I could get enough leverage to push myself upwards.

Dimitri had the good grace to wait until I was on my feet to say; "I don't want to talk to you right now."

I frowned at him. "Remember how you always used to force me to talk about things I didn't want to in school?" I looked him straight in the eyes, trying to muster up the courage to not allow him to have his way. My fear wanted me to scamper into the master bedroom, but it would make the whole situation much worse. "We need to talk."

He quirked an eyebrow at me, a bit of a scowl breaking through his icy facade. "Then talk. You have five minutes before I need to get in the shower." He threw a quick glance to the bathroom door before returning his attention to me.

Everything that I had prepared to say completely flew out of my mind. I fumbled to come up with the proper words. How does one politely word, "yes, I lied, and you have every right to be upset with me because I lied, but it was for your own good" without sounding like an asshole. Great, I'm an asshole now. I looked down at my feet, uncomfortable under his dark stare.

My mind reeled, then seemed to completely crash. He was upset with me, and I wanted to fix it. I knew it was my right to not want to have kids. I also knew that it was his right, as my partner, to know what my decision was. He did agree to spend the rest of his life with me. I ought to let him know what is in store with that future.

Eventually, I was able to look into his eyes and stutter out a soft "I love you." Then I quickly looked back down to the vacuumed carpet, pulling on a loose part of the weave with my toe.

Dimitri snorted. "Then why did you lie?" He demanded, impatience seeping into his tone.

"I didn't lie," I interjected, trying my best to keep the indignation out of my tone. His eyebrows furrowed, and I spoke before he could respond. "I know I wasn't entirely truthful, but I didn't lie."

"Technically, that is called a lie of omission."

"I only omitted it because it no longer became an issue," I supplied. "I suppose I could have brought it up, but we already agreed on the way home from Palm Springs that kids weren't going to be an option. It seemed overkill for me to go into detail about why I didn't want kids." Judging by his expression, he wasn't convinced. Sighing, I tried again to say what needed to be said. "I didn't think that Sonya would find a way for dhampirs to have kids, that wasn't even something that we thought she could figure out. I didn't think that we would have to talk about it again. I didn't think, okay Dimitri? I'm an idiot, I get it, okay?" My voice broke, and I could feel the tightening in my chest as I held back a sob.

He stared at me, deeply contemplating what I was saying. I knew my five minutes were up, but he no longer seemed to be in a hurry to get to the shower. Finally he sighed, running his hand through his messy, morning hair. "Fine. Then tell me what you should have a long time ago."

"Right now?" I said incredulously. Just a few moments back, he was ready to bolt out the door if I said the wrong thing. I guess I must have said the right thing, because he no longer was trying to run.

"Yes."

"I thought you had to leave?"

"I did. I do. I will make sure someone covers my shift until I get there," he shrugged. "I think you are avoiding the topic. Again." His eyebrow raised, fixing me with one of his all too familiar 'I'm mister bad ass guardian, and if I say talk, talk' expression.

Sighing, I looked into his eyes and mentally prepared myself for what was coming next. "I guess I am," I admitted, taking a deep breath. "I can't have kids. Not physically, but like, I can't be a mom. Physically, I guess I could have kids. Emotionally, I would absolutely suck. I'm not a parent. I can't parent. And I think it would be disastrous to try." I ended my semi coherent ramble with a shrug that only managed to irritate my sore back.

His gaze softened almost instantly. He regarded me again for a few moments, with much less disdain than he did a few moments ago. "Roza," he sighed, running his finger through his hair again. I hardly noticed. My attention was focused everywhere but him. But, damn son, he looked good with his tangled hair. Try as I might, I had difficulty ignoring that. "You should have said something sooner."

"I'm saying it now," I whispered, my voice trembled slightly. My breaths came in shaky gasps, I was close to tears.

Arms wrapped around my waist, and Dimitri pulled me to his chest. He rubbed my back, murmuring in Russian as I cried.

**A/N: This chapter was hard for me to figure out how I wanted to go. It still isn't perfect, but none of my chapters are. If I were to wait until my stories were perfect, I would never update. I'm not happy with it, but it is moving the story along. **

**I'm nearing a vaguely planned part of the story. I know how it is supposed to end, but we have now entered the uncharted territory of the middle of the story. Any suggestions would be welcome. **

**So, it is now almost one in the morning where I am. I probably should go to sleep. Again, you are all fantastic for reading, favoriting, following and reviewing. TBH, reviews are my favorite. I'm a review whore. I know. So send them my way. **

**Until next time!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: In case you guys didn't know, I always try my best to respond to all the reviews I get on my stories. Sometimes it takes longer for me to get to each of them, but I have always thought it was important to respond to them. All you, after all, have taken the time to read and review what I have written. The least I can do is take the time to write a short response. **

**This applies to guest reviews. Everyone has the right to leave their opinions on my review page. Likewise, I have the right to respond and if needed, defend my work. Most of you guys are really kind about your reviews, even when they do contain criticism. Some of you are a bit rude in your reviews. **

**To those of you who anonymously leave rude guest reviews, thanks for reading. But I will defend my work. Since you are a guest, I have no way to privately resolve whatever issues you have with my story. **

**There is a way to leave constructive criticism in a review without coming off as a jerk. 123yulia, Passainate, Fiera Hathaway and luciinwaters are great examples of leaving kind, but constructive reviews. TBH, they are awesome, and I have and will continue to take their opinions on the matter into account as I write. **

**Now, I hate to have to force everyone who is not involved to see this, but there is a particular guest reviewer who is getting under my skin. Last chapter I responded to her comments on my story. Their first review goes as followed, word for word; "**_**Rose was forever pissed off when Tasha was throwing herself at Dimitri and making him a promise of having children. And now Rose has been told there is a possibility that her and could have their own biological child...she is repulsed by it. Rose pisses me off she is nothing but a selfish liar, she fought to save Dimitri, hell she fought just to get him to love her again. She knew how much Dimitri wanted a child and how he loves children, i mean he is an Uncle and he loves his niece and nephew.**_

**_By Rose's admission that children are off the table and she is too selfish to think of no one but herself, her needs, her wants. She doesn't deserve to have such a loving man as Dimitri, that poor man is seven years older than her, he can't wait forever. So maybe he should cut his losses and find himself a nice Moroi who would love the idea of having a baby with him._**

**_Rose is just like her mother, cold and heartless. She loves Dimitri because he is there for her and only her, but not enough to give him the one thing in the world that he would want...a child._**

**_I don't blame Dimitri being pissed off. I would too, infact i would be packing my bags and leaving Rose to grow old...alone and be a spinster."_**

**Again, you are entitled your opinions. And you are more than welcome to leave your opinions on my review page. But just be aware, when you write your reviews in a certain tone, I will respond in the same. Don't be outraged that I was unhappy with your rudeness, and I responded in kind. I am not a "turn the other cheek" kind of person. **

**I feel the need to detail this out based off the second review I got from this person; **_**"Thank for your dig at my opinion to your story, it's so comforting that when asked to leave a review we get criticised for it. I mean we are entitled to review what we get out of a story we read. I happen to love the character Rose Hathaway, just not the selfish one you have written in your story." **_**The author thanks you for your continued support. Each time you leave a review, it adds to the amount of views my story gets! Again, yes, you are entitled your opinion. I am entitled to respond to your reviews. I'm not the horrible person you are trying to make me out to be, but I am also not a doormat for you to stomp your rude reviews on. Let it be clear that when I am responding in a less than friendly way, it is because you began the conversation in that tone. Hopefully this is the last time I will have to publicly address this. **

**Another guest who reviewed 6/1/2015 was another angry and opinionated reviewer. But thanks for your review anyways, and I am glad that my writing caused you to have such intense emotions. **

**But let's not focus on the negative any more than needed! Most of you guys leave really kind reviews, and are polite even when you don't like something I have done. And I'm sorry that I kind of started off this update in such a negative manner. Your guys' support is the only reason I'm still updating! **

**123yulia: I like what you are saying about Tasha and how she might remove herself in the situation. You are completely right when you say that Rose is strong, loyal, and not at all heartless. As you said, she has fears, and those fears are causing her to make some poor decisions. But I need those poor decisions, because they are fueling the storyline. Thanks for your review! I always appreciate it when people take the time to write long reviews. **

**Unnamed Guest 6/1/2015:I want her to not be afraid and be happy too! It may just take some time and a lot of long conversations for her to get to that point. Thanks for the review!**

**Erica Rexes: I accept your compliments! I'm beyond humbled that you are loving my story. I would suggest reading the series, because it is fantastic. I update as frequently as I can. Also, if you create an account on here, give this story a follow/favorite, you will be notified when I update. **

**Y123: Thanks! Here is an update for you!**

**Guest 5/19/2015: Keep reading and find out! It's a surprise :) **

**Passainate: Thank you! I am trying to follow the characters personality as closely as possible. She isn't disgusted by a kid, per se, but you will find out more about that below!**

**Vivivivivi: Thank you! Keep leaving reviews, they make me smile!**

**Guest 5/2/2015: Okay, sorry for the misunderstanding. But I'm still glad that you liked my story :) **

**So, enough with the review talk. Here is the next chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I am not Richelle Mead. See previous chapters if you need more clarification. **

Chapter 7: Dimitri's POV

"You can go ahead and start whenever you are ready," I say evenly, trying to remain as calm as possible. Rose carefully examines my face for any trace of emotion, and seems disappointed when there is none to be found. I wanted her to be honest, and to clearly explain how she came to the conclusion to lie to me. Showing intense emotion would completely destroy any chance of a thorough explanation. Very simply, if I get worked up, she will get worked up, and we would both just make a bigger mess of this situation.

However, despite my best efforts, I was far from emotionless.

We sat at the little table that had been pushed against the wall of our kitchen. Rose uneasily nibbled at the cereal that she had poured herself. She barely had touched it. She repeatedly scooped up some of the cereal and tipped her spoon so that it fell back into the bowl. Normally, I would gently chastise her for making such mess. The bowl was filled to the point that each time she did this, small droplets of milk splashed onto the table.

"Where do you want me to begin?"

"Let's start with why you don't want kids."

"I already told you. I wouldn't be a good mom."

"So not because of their quality of life, but because you have convinced yourself that you couldn't possibly be a good parent."

"You say that like it's silly. I'm not being silly. You know I used to hate my mom for not being around? The more I grow up, the more I realize that she wasn't as terrible as I made her out to be."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean that I recognize that she could have done better, but I also realize that I am very much the same way. I can't be a good mom. Not in our line of work, and not with the way I am. Even if we did have a kid, and we did keep it, they would have a similar upbringing to mine. We would be away working for most of the time, coming home at odd hours of the night. The kid wouldn't even really be raised by us, but by whoever happens to be working at a daycare or whatever."

"Hmm. I think there is still more here."

She fell silent. Wordlessly, she twirled her spoon in her cereal dish with gently movements of her wrist. Her body hunched over, seemingly trying to fold itself in on itself. She mumbled something and seemed to grow even smaller.

"What did you say?" I leaned forward and delicately touched her hand.

"I'm scared," she whispered. Her eyes briefly glanced up to mine, then rapidly fell back down to her hands. She went still, her hands curled into fists on the table, her cereal abandoned.

I sighed rubbing my temples with my index fingers for a few moments. Glancing up for a moment, I could see that Rose watched me with wide eyes. She wasn't crying, but she seemed to be close to it. "Being scared is normal, Roza," I sighed. "But why did you act so offended earlier?"

"I wasn't offended, really," she assured me. "It was more the way that Sonya was asking. She kind of questioned my ability to monitor my own body. I would know if I was pregnant, or if I was at any time pregnant, and her tone seemed to imply otherwise."

"Oh," I responded, feeling a bit foolish for a moment. "I guess I can see that Sonya was being a bit intense. So you aren't disgusted by kids?"

"No. I just don't think that having them is going to be a great idea for me to have any."

"Oh."

"I'm sorry, Dimitri," she reached forward and tentatively grasped my hand. "I know you want a family, but that's just not on the table for me right now."

I paused for a few more moments, gently tracing circles on Rose's soft hand. "Okay. I guess it makes sense."

"Wait," Rose said. "Really? That's all you have to say on that matter? I thought you would try to be more persuasive."

"No. You said no already. Besides, you won't even marry me right now."

She chuckled. "I never said that I won't marry you. I just won't marry you until I'm older."

I grinned at her. "Don't sound so sure of yourself. I may convince you, yet."

"Oh really? I don't think so," Rose leaned forward so her face was inches from mine. "But you are welcome to try."

Later that night I was awoken by the sound of my phone vibrating on the side table. I ignored it, hoping that whoever was calling would wait until the morning. After a few moments, it went silent for a brief moment. Another call came in, this time waking Rose up.

She groaned and rolled over so that her head rested against my chest. Her fingertips traced lazy zig-zags across my abdomen. "Are you going to answer that?" She murmured into my chest.

"It stopped ringing," I argued, not too keen to leave my warm bed.

"They are gonna call again. Might as well answer it." Soft lips pressed against my collarbone. "Could be important."

"Hmm," I dipped my head to rest against her forehead. "You make a compelling argument."

Her lips pressed against my neck. "Answer it." She rolled back over to her side of the bed, taking most of the blankets with her.

The phone vibrated with the fourth time, this time I answered within the next few moments. I fumbled to unplug it from the wall, and nearly dropped it on my face. "Belikov," I said briefly, trying to tug back the blankets from Rose.

"Dimitri?" Lissa's voice sounded over the line. She sounded frantic.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt?"

"No, no," She said quickly. "I'm fine. I just need Rose, now."

"Now?"

"Yes. Now. As quickly as possible," her voice sounded hoarse, as though she had been crying. "She didn't answer her phone."

"Okay, okay," I forced myself to sound as calm and reassuring as possible, "I'm handing her the phone now." I nudged Rose, who had managed to doze off. She groaned, rolled over, and gave me a questioning look.

"What?" She whispered, looking at me slightly apprehensively.

"It's Lissa."

Her face immediately morphed into that of concern as she pulled the phone away from me.

I could hear Lissa's high pitched tone on the other line, but not the individual words. Rose kicked herself out of the cocoon of blankets she had surrounded herself in. "It's okay, it's gonna be fine. I'm on my way." She quickly pulled on a pair of sweats and an old tee shirt over her head, all while attempting to comfort Lissa on the other line.

"Stay here," she told me as she dropped a quick kiss to my lips. "She is safe, she just needs me. Go back to bed," she whispered as she had the phone angled away so that Lissa couldn't hear what she was saying. "Yeah, Lissa, I'm leaving the apartment right now. Just stay on the line with me."

**A/N: Sorry. This chapter is a bit short, but I have figured out what the next chunk of the story is going to be. I needed to wrap up this little part to start the next section. So the next chapter is going to be longer. **

**Thank you all for reading/reviewing/following/favoriting/ and being the best readers in the world. Y'all are fantastic. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**Rose POV**

**Disclaimer: I'm not Richelle Mead. I have said this before. I will say it again. Because most fanfiction authors have little disclaimers at the beginning of their stories. And I want to fit in. So please accept my little disclaimer and group me with the cool people on this website. "I wanna be popuuuularrrrr". ( See Wicked's Popular. For that one. I'm also not the person who wrote that. Or sang that. But I did actually sing it in my shower. Am I famous yet?)**

**But yeah... In case you guys haven't noticed, I'm kind of bad at updating on a regular basis. I have started school again (yay!) and so now I am a full time student. For most of that time, I have also been working full time to put myself through school. Great news though, I am quitting my job! I have just been awarded an unexpected full tuition scholarship and I don't need to work anymore. **

**I wish I could say that I will have more time to devote to writing fanfiction, but to be honest I don't think that will be the case. I brilliantly decided to major in English, which entails a LOT of writing in and of itself. On top of that, family drama has made life complicated. So this has been sitting on my computer only half written since June... and now it is September... (Face palms.) **

**Anyways… Back to the story!**

I wasn't entirely sure what I was expecting as I quietly made my way into Lissa's housing unit. When asked by one of the guardians on duty what I was doing there at such a late hour, I simply shrugged him off. "Girl stuff, you know?" I responded vaguely, trying to make it seem like it was preposterous that he would question me for needing a bit of down time with the queen just before three in the morning. Regardless, no one was really in a position to stop me.

I inched my way through the dark apartment, using the tips of my toes to feel if I was about to run into anything. I stubbed my toe a couple times against furniture, but I was able to find my way into the spare bathroom fairly easily. Light spilled through under the bathroom door, illuminating my path a bit better and allowing me to throw most of my caution away.

"Lissa," I whispered through the door. "Let me in."

I heard her muffled sobs as she shuffled to the door to let me in. The door creaked open just a crack, enough to let the light illuminate a bit of the hallway around me. Lissa didn't seem to be inclined to open the door away, I heard her feet drag against the tile into the bathroom again.

I pushed against the door, light temporarily blinding me for a moment. Something else hit me at intensely as the light, the sharp, metallic scent of blood.

"Lissa!" I exclaimed, my voice pitching higher than what I expected. "What is going on? What happened?"

She sat on the floor, her knees clutched to her chest. Her thin arms were wrapped around herself, looking much more pale than usual. Red splotches dotted her face, and her eyes were filled with tears. I only took this in for a moment until I realized that she was sitting in a pool of blood. It wasn't a large pool of blood, granted, but still enough to cause major concern.

"Oh my god," I breathed. "You're bleeding. You need medical attention, from like a professional." I knelt down next to her, wrapping my hands around hers. They were cold, and shaking as they squeezed mine.

"No!" Lissa exclaimed, "No doctors!"

"Liss, you are bleeding out. You could be dying." My thumbs gently rubbed heat back into her fingers. "This isn't really going to be something you have a choice in."

"No, please, please, not right now." She begged, her voice hiccupping and shoulders shaking from a bout of sobs. "I didn't tell anyone."

"Tell anyone what?" Her tears came at a more rapid pace, her cries were silent, but racked through her lithe frame. I tried to calm her down while simultaneously coaxing an answer from her.

"I- I'm pregnant," she managed to stammer out. She pulled one of her hands away from mine to wipe away her tears. Then, in a most unqueenly, but completely understandable manner, she wiped her nose on the collar of her pajama top. "Or at least I was. I don't know if I am anymore."

"Lissa," I sighed. I took a deep breath, pushing my hair back. "I'm so sorry. But we really need to get you to a doctor."

"But we can't! You are now the only person that I knows the truth!"

"Liss, it's gonna be okay. But you really need a doctor. You can tell everyone after we know you are going to be okay."

"You don't get it, Rose." She insisted, "I think I am-was-whichever- three months along."

"Why didn't you tell anyone sooner?"

"Because I wasn't ready. I didn't want to believe it myself. I'm too young to have kids right now. We were supposed to wait until things calmed down a bit. People would calm down about me being the queen, less protestors and all so it would be safer. I wasn't ready," she reiterated.

"I understand the feeling. But you really need medical attention, Liss."

She hiccupped again. "Okay Rose." Her nose crinkled up for a moment as she thought. "How would you understand the feeling?"

"Story for another time. Do you have a preference in which doctor I call over?"

She shook her head, then pursed her chapped lips together for a second. "We will talk later about it, okay?"

"Okay. I promise," I pulled my phone out of my back pocket, dialing the number for the small hospital that was here at court.

Lissa was fairly inconsolable that morning, which was more than understandable. Once the doctors had thoroughly assured me that she wasn't physically on the brink of death, I sat with her on the tiny hospital bed. We sat that way for hours, her hand in mind and her head on my shoulder, which had become damp with tears that I couldn't hear. I didn't talk to her, I didn't even know what to say to her. What do you say to your best friend when she just lost her baby? I couldn't very well tell her that it was going to be okay just yet, her emotions were too raw. I couldn't even really think of anything that I could say other than that. So I just held her thin fingers to mine tightly. She didn't need me to talk about it right at that moment anyways. She just needed someone there for her.

She had initially refused to let me call Christian, or even answer Dimitri's worried texts that occasionally flared on my phone's screen. She wasn't ready to tell anyone quite yet, so I let her have her time.

When she finally did ask me to call her boyfriend, after a minute I got his voicemail. He was probably still asleep. We had left their housing unit as quietly as possible, Lissa begged the guardians who had stayed behind to not say anything. Not that she needed to beg them to keep their silence. She was their queen after all.

Christian called me back once Lissa had finally fallen asleep. I simply whispered to him that he should come down to the hospital, and that everything will be explained once he got down here. He wasn't happy about my vague responses, but I flat out refused to say anything more.

"Was that Christian?" Lissa asked. Her eyes were still bloodshot, her face puffy from tears. My heart broke for her once again.

"Yeah, he is on his way," I replied in the softest tone I could manage without sounding condescending. "Is that okay?"

She nodded, then looked into the distance for a moment. "You are probably starving. You should go get some food."

I took the hint, pulling my sneakers back on before shuffling down to the cafeteria. I wasn't hungry, actually. The thought of eating made me feel sick. Instead I dialed Dimitri, talking to him as I paced back and forth across the lobby floor. Like I had done with Christian, I hadn't told him much other than to come to the hospital. Unlike Christian, he had answered his phone immediately, and within just a few minutes his arms wrapped around my exhausted frame. He pulled me to the worn green sofa in the waiting area as I told him about what happened.

I couldn't even explain to him what I thought about the situation myself. I was hurt because my friend was hurt. I felt guilty, though I knew I couldn't have done anything to prevent it. I was mostly exhausted, my vision felt tingly and my head foggy. Very quickly the old and ratty sofa we were sitting on became incredibly tempting to my sleepy mind. I drifted off in his arms, forgetting about all of the world's troubles and all of my guilt as I dozed off.

**A/N: Bwahaha. Maniacal laugh. Bet no one was expecting that. Originally, Lissa was just going to be pregnant, but apparently that was too obvious. A lot of you guys guessed that in your reviews. And you know what? I don't like being predictable. So surprise, surprise.**


	9. UPDATE

Hey guys, Shay here. Sorry, but this isn't an update. Annnd it's been a year since I last updated. More than a year. I'm sorry, it's been a pretty rough year for me. I've been pretty sick this past month, and have only recently not been in complete pain. My depression and anxiety have kicked into overdrive, and I am having a rough time trying to figure out the best course of action with that.

But anyways, I reread my old stuff, and I think I want to start writing again, but I just want to know if anyone is interested in reading this still?

Again, sorry this isn't an update. I will delete it soon.


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